One of the most powerful stories coming out of San Diego Comic-Con this year will almost certainly involve Usagi Yojimbo creator Stan Sakai.

Late last year, after a long period of illness, Sakai's wife Sharon had to spend a lengthy amount of time in the hospital, and then required ongoing care at home, as well as expensive medication. Fellow comics creators rallied around Sakai to help him through this trying financial time, but the comics industry isn't done helping this particular legend in their midst just yet.

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If you've ever read Usagi Yojimbo, you know why it's widely regarded as a comics masterpiece. Sakai has produced consistently excellent work on the book for three decades now, both through his exceptional art and through his complex, ambitious storytelling. After 30 years, Usagi Yojimbo remains one of the best books on the racks, and this year at San Diego Comic-Con fellow artists will both help Sakai in his time of need and pay tribute to this masterpiece with The Sakai Project, an art book from Dark Horse Comics celebrating 30 years of Sakai's creation.

The Sakai Project has been building for a while now, but as Comic-Con dawns, Dark Horse has finally revealed just how big the project is. The final book, which will be available at the Dark Horse booth during the convention for $29.99, will feature 262 (yes, you read that right) artists, all doing their own spin on Sakai's creation. And this isn't just a group of fans who turned in their fan art. This is a who's who of great comic-book art, ranging from Neal Adams to Adam Hughes to Mike Mignola to Walt Simonson to Chris Samnee and many, many more. All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to Sakai and his family to help with their ongoing financial needs.

The end result of this months-long effort to help Sakai and his family through a difficult time isn't just a testament to the respect Sakai's peers have for him, but to the continuing impact of his work. Usagi Yojimbo ranks among the most influential comics of its time by now, and many, many artists are clearly willing to provide proof of that with this project. So if you're a Sakai fan and want to help the man and his loved ones through a tough time, pick up the book at the con, or stay tuned for information on how you can pick up The Sakai Project later. Check out a full list (and trust us, it's a long list) of the artists involved, along with a few art samples, below.